‘Umeke switches over to vegan menu

A go-to business for natural and organic food downtown has gone vegan with a new owner, a new chef and organic kalo (taro) as one of its key ingredients.

New owner Robert Daguio started with ‘Umeke Market in 2007 after college graduation, stocking groceries at the former Kahala store.

Chef Trisha Gonsalves, known better as Mama T from her Ital Kitchen pop-up in Kakaako, creates vegan dishes, eschewing animal products of any kind, including honey.

Some have been less than enthused about the disappearance of meat from ‘Umeke, “but Mama T makes such good things that I took the risk of doing it,” Daguio said. “My daughter said she’ll eat anything that Mama T makes,” and she’s a picky 12-year-old, he said.

Top sellers are curry made with organic local kalo, carrots, potatoes and other ingredients simmered in coconut milk, and seasoned with organic ginger and local olena (turmeric), “kind of yellow like a curry, but not spicy — it’s on the sweeter side,” he said. “Aina stew is probably right behind that. It’s like squid luau or beef luau with kalo … and local luau leaves.”

The Korean fried chicken, as it is called, contains no actual chicken but is made from vital wheat gluten and other ingredients, and regularly sells out. Local YouTube star Pashyn Santos and her spouse, Wendy, are seen in a video on the ‘Umeke Market Instagram feed describing the tasty not-chicken chicken dish, kalo curry and kalo musubi.

The restaurant’s Facebook page is also up to date, while its website is a work in progress, Daguio said.

Regular-size plate lunches are $10 and come with rice and two choices, while a mini plate is $8.50 and includes rice and one choice. A la carte items are served in a cup for $5, and many grab-and-go options include sandwiches like the “kalo- strami,” salads, raw desserts and chia seed pudding.

The official transition took place March 1, and Daguio closed for a few days to clean up, paint, redo tables and chairs, and to afford Gonsalves time to give the staff a crash course on the new menu.

Money for chefs

Scholarships of up to $20,000, work-study programs and more opportunities from the James Beard Foundation are available to aspiring chefs, working chefs and wine professionals.

The $20,000 annual JBF National Scholars scholarships are for exceptionally talented, food-focused candidates working toward leadership roles in culinary arts, food studies, agriculture, hospitality management and related endeavors.

One awardee will be selected from each of 10 geographic regions. Hawaii applicants are in the Western region and will be considered alongside those from California and Nevada.

Kapiolani Community College culinary graduate Vaneza Lyn Agustin won a $5,000 scholarship a few years ago while still a student through a Friends of James Beard fundraiser at Hoku’s restaurant at the Kahala Hotel & Resort. She used the funds to pay off her tuition and some student loans. Additional opportunities followed, she said.

“Right after I got it, I did a guest-chef appearance at Hoku’s restaurant,” she said. “I got to work with the executive chef for a sake dinner, and I got to make two dishes, an amuse bouche and an appetizer.” She later worked for chef Chai Chaowasaree, “and then chef Grant Sato, one of my mentors at KCC, got me a connection with Aloun Farms.”

Agustin is sales and marketing manager for Aloun and works with local chefs recommending in-season produce and its uses. She also coordinates the company’s annual high school culinary competition, inviting top local chefs to be guest judges.

Other foundation scholarships are specialized, like Andrew Zimmern’s Second Chances Scholarship, which offers $10,000 to help a student overcome extreme hardships.

The Charlie Trotter Memorial Scholarship gives up to $15,000 to professionals to study at an accredited culinary school, and the Jean-Louis Palladin Professional Work/Study Grant helps a professional to work with food producers at their source. The foundation also has programs specifically for women.

The online application deadline is May 15. Applications for the Palladin grant must be postmarked by June 15.

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